Homes flooded as water main bursts
FIREFIGHTERS were called out in the early hours of Sunday (September 23) after a burst water main flooded three homes and 30 other properties had to be protected from the deluge with sandbags.
Residents were awoken at 2am after a torrent of water flowed down the middle of Regents Close, Broadfield.
West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said a water main burst at the top of the road following the rain that battered Sussex over the weekend.
Bottled water was handed out to residents as workmen from Southern Water worked to isolate the water main and fire crews pumped water from properties.
Ertu Azak was playing on his Xbox with a group of friends when the deluge entered his home.
Ertu, 18, said: “There was quite a lot of noise and I thought it was raining outside and so I looked out of the window.
“You could see the water rising outside the window, I said to the others that it was flooding but they didn’t believe me.
“The water then started to come into the house. We called the fire brigade and then realised we couldn’t get out of the front door because of the water.
“We had to climb out of the kitchen window to get out of the house, and then we went and knocked on people’s doors to let them know.
“We tried to alert all of the neighbours. The fire brigade got here and were here until about 4am pumping the water out. It was a bit of a shock.
“There isn’t too much damage. We have been given big driers to get the damp out. We have wooden floor boards and not carpets and so it should be alright.”
Sumeya Miya, who lives next door, added: “We had just finished watching a film when we heard the noise.
“My mum and my sisters thought it was raining. We looked out and then saw the water in the front garden. Luckily it didn’t come into the house. Some of our neighbours knocked on the door to let us know what was happening.”
A resident, who did not want to be named, added: “I have some drains in my garden. Some of our neighbours came over and said ‘open up the drains’ and so I was able to open the drains and the water flowed into them and not the house.
“It they hadn’t warned us our property could have been flooded too.”
Another resident added: “It was like a torrent of water gushing down the middle of the close. I have never seen anything like it, it was a steady stream of water.”
Water was restored to the properties at 7am on Sunday.
A spokeswoman for Southern Water said: “We wish to apologise for the problems and disruption caused to our customers following the unexpected burst of a 6-inch water main.
“We first became aware of the problem at approximately 2:15am and a crew was dispatched to the site to locate the burst and carry out repairs as soon as possible.
“Bottled water was distributed to customers in the area while repairs were being carried out under difficult weather conditions.
“We greatly appreciate the support we get from our customers who report leaks to us and continue to urge anyone who spots a leak to call our free phone leak line on 0800 820999.”
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Weather for Crawley
Friday 24 May 2013
Today
Light showers
Temperature: 5 C to 11 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: West
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 6 C to 16 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: North
